Hello Everyone!

Today I present to you ReColbiner - The Sims 1 Recolour Combiner

This is the first release and it is in super Beta girls and boys, so test at the risk of hijinks and shenanigans.

Basically, it's an external utility like Transmog or FAROut that you will use to select several separate CC items' IFF files and combine the data into one Multi-Object file that will cycle through the graphics of the original objects when in game. Giving us proxy-recolour object functionality in the Sims 1.





Benefits

Reduced Catalogue Size – No more scrolling through 20 pages to find that chair

Reduces Amount of CC Files – If two files become one file, that's less files

Less ID Conflicts – It uses only the main file's ID so overall there will be fewer in game

Folder Size Reduction – Combined files share some data so there's a small size saving

My Main Goal

While the other benefits are a nice by-product, my main and only goal is to make it possible to squeeze in as much CC as humanly possible into my Downloads folder.

I'm sure some of you, like me, have hit the "Download Limit" and don't take too kindly to that. Whether it's due to the folder size being 2.5GB, the GUIDs conflicting, or the number of files not being able to exceed 10,000, something stops us from having the ungodly amount of custom furniture pieces we deserve.

So, if that sounds like you, I'd greatly appreciate your help in testing if this could be a possible fix. If GUIDs are the problem, we'll cut them in half so we can fit twice as much in. If you find it helps, let me know and we might find out what the true limiter really is.



Known Limitations
For a full list of limitations, bugs, and instructions see the breakdown on my Patreon post, but at the moment we are pretty much limited to only combining static objects that do not have an animation (think end tables, statues, bushes). Single tiled objects are safest but multi-tile objects that were originally cloned from the same base should also be in a working state. More complicated mutli-tile objects may result in a jumbled rug with it's corner in the middle and it's middle on the road. This tool is a work in progress. Coded with AI assistance.



Special thanks to SimmerAl on MTS and Aponee for all their research on colour-changing objects, everyone who ever contributed to the SimsTek IFF Wiki and DnfJeff on GitHub for the great idea to make a tool for this so I didn't have to alter every object by hand. Custom Content used in testing images belongs to Ferndale Sims.

Download
Executable is available on my Patreon, but is totally free and always will be. If you have any trouble seeing the post or downloading let me know it's my first post there.

FeralMoonwytch - ReColbiner Version 0.0.1-Beta

Wow!!! This sounds amazing. I'm not in a position to test it right now, but thanks for making it.

Okay. Can this be used for creating new objects?

I have no reason to use this so I haven't tested it, and it's not open source that I can tell, so what I'm about to say may be off-base, but:

I think what this is designed to do is to combine the DGRPs, PALTs, and SPR2s of multiple similarly behaving objects into a single object with one GUID, alongside probably a new BHAV or two that will cause the object to cycle graphical states when placed. Given how the screenshot of the program looks, you would need to have multiple iffs with pre-prepared sprites already in them, so it couldn't be used to make an object from scratch. (I also don't have enough information from the available documentation to know if it would be able to handle spf files (or files that are iff endings but are functionally spfs in that they only have sprite and other image data and none of the "meat" of the object like OBJDs and BHAVs and such). MOST people aren't working with spfs, though (they're more common in development builds to allow the graphic development and the object behavior to progress independently of each other), so that's more of a tangent.)

TL;DR: It likely can't be used to make objects "from scratch" (or from clone) like IFF Pencil, Transmogrifier, etc. can be used to do.

Thanks for explainaition. With things being said I wonder if this tool gives you a chance to create new recolors to existing "meshes" without need to clone it.

I'd give this tool a try with set of animated paintings packed in one.

Okaay I promised to try and I tried this tool and come to give a feedback.

I tried to do it with a bunch of posters I created recently. They have same features as posters from Superstar as once picked from catalogue, they come rolled, and switch to unrolled when leaning to wall, and back again. The resulting set doesn't work for animated sprites as once compressed, the first code ever comes broken. It messes up all the states and posters come in rolled state forever just switching all sprites of each item in set marked first.

I would have liked to test it on regular paintings but I am too lazy right now to create another bunch of paintings. Also my guessing it will 99% work. I am just curious more about "View" interaction in this case. I will try later with paintings. I see It would come good for items that have no other features out of pick and place, which will not move, won't change states or swich sprites when use, like posters, chairs, animated sculptures, bathtubes, sinks, technics, clocks etc.

Thank you for testing! Yes, you're completely correct v0.0.1 would only work with static objects that never change their sprite.

Purplewowie's analysis was pretty much spot on, the code works by combining all the DRGPs and associated image data to work under one OBJD so for my first test anything in the original Object Data that asks it to switch Drawgroups as part of an animation cycle would either default to the first set of Drawgroups in the list (the first object in the list of object you set to combine) or just completely break the animation. It wouldn't be useful in creating new objects since all it does is copy data into one file and switch through them with a new BHAV, you'd still have to do all the work of making the recolours individually and then combining them at the end as it needs a lot of the data from each fully created file.

I have stated working on animated object now, but it seems like every type of object handles how it cycles through it's animated sprites differently so I have to analyse each type's IFF file one by one. I have Dining Chairs working as of v0.0.2 now as a proof of concept that animated objects are possible, I will take a look at the Super Star posters and make sure they are added to the next update!

Update - v0.0.3Beta

Lions and Tigers and Beds, Oh My!



This update was all about untangling how objects with multiple sprites cycle through their own animations. I found about 6 different methods the original game uses and I've patched in usability for the ones I could see a relatively painless workaround for. Basically, a bunch more items can now be combined than on first release.

Holding up well: Beds, Beds & Love Beds, Wardrobes, Baths & Showers, Sinks, Dining Chairs, Recliners, Fountains, Aquariums, Hot Tubs

Still a no-go: Counters, Lamps, Awnings (anything that snaps or has a visual updates within Buy/Build Mode)

Hit or miss: Appliances like dishwashers may randomly snap back to default, and dead plants will swatch-change to their living version even after they're died.
Note: they are still very much dead and will still be ruining your room score.



Download
Executable and full changelog details are up on my Patreon. Testing and feedback welcome!

FeralMoonwytch - ReColbiner Version 0.0.3-Beta

https://www.patreon.com/cw/FeralMoonwytch

Cool! I'll try to make a bunch of new animated posters. I don't want to combine my previous ones. Maybe some frames for that too because why not...

I wish you will also share your testing objects

The Superstar ones were working when I tested copies of them in my game, so if yours are a visual change from that base they should work now.

The testing objects here are the Equinox Lovebed from Sim Freaks, The Melanie Fountain from Boudoir Blanc and everything else is from Ferndale Sims.

Thank you very much for your tool it is kinda working. I found it changes a little in-game coordinates of items that merged, this is about situation when merge recolours of the same object.
Even so, it is working, and animations look great when I merged single recliners.

But anyways I am came with troubleshooting regarding recliners which are double. And you said nothing in post that double recliners were unsupported, but just single ones. And i found those are unsupported only when tried. This is not okay.

Can you share the name of the creator or recolours of the double recliner you are having issues with so that I can test them and see why they aren't working? Just a quick and dirty test with an ugly fake recolour I did of the the Maxis double recliner didn't give me any issues and they are working ok as intended.

As the program is in Beta I think it's fair to expect bugs and issues more often than not. It's also not possible for me to test every single item in existence some items are bound to be incompatible. I can test them as they come up and patch if needed, some complex items may just never be compatible and I think that's fine. I will add a disclaimer to my patreon page that all of my testing information is from items I have personally had the chance to test.

The recolours are by me. And those are changed in coding to fit PowerNap recliers by Simslice.

Merged file in attachments. Sepearated files are in my post here: https://modthesims.info/showpost.ph...89&postcount=10

Thank you for your kind response. Regards Vic

As best I can tell the merged file you shared contains only one recolour, it has one set of sprites and DRGPs. It contains the colour change BHAV but no other colours to cycle through, so either the combination process was interrupted before it could copy the other colours into the new file or only one file was ever selected at the time of combination.

I downloaded all the other colours from your page and was able to combine them without issue using the latest publicly available version (B0.0.5) and they seem to be working in game. I used the Green as the main base item, but the internals of every item looked identical so any item should work as the first selected item.

I did not expect it. Just one recolour was definetely an issue somehow happened. Because I merged all the items and description was changed.

I linked to this thread in case anyone would like merged recliners file. However download count perform really bad.

Thank you very much. Regards. Vic